- Accessibility Consulting for Digital Product Teams
FAQs
I get this question a lot — accessibility standards can be confusing. Over time, the standards have evolved, with each update given a version number. The current version is WCAG 2.2.
WCAG 2.2 is essentially a list of recommended requirements for making digital products accessible. These requirements are grouped into three levels:
Understanding which level applies to your product helps you focus your accessibility efforts effectively.
In short: no — but context matters.
The easiest and most efficient time to implement accessibility is during the build of a product, when foundations can be considered and integrated from the start. If a product already exists and accessibility wasn’t part of the initial build, some work may need to be revisited — in some cases, components might even need to be rebuilt.
Experience shows that organisational structure also plays a role. Larger organisations often face more hoops to jump through, which can make even small changes more costly and time-consuming. Smaller or mid-sized organisations typically move faster, with leaner teams and fewer procedural hurdles, making implementation quicker and more cost-effective.
No — but it’s a helpful tool.
Automated testing should always be part of your accessibility toolkit. These tools are great at catching low-hanging fruit and easily identifiable issues, but they also produce false positives and false negatives, which require skill to interpret.
Many accessibility issues simply cannot be detected automatically. True accessibility goes beyond checking guidelines — it’s about applying them in context, considering your product and the users who rely on it. No single method works for every site, which is why a combination of manual and automated testing is essential.
Accessibility standards can be confusing — and the W3C website doesn’t always make them easier to understand. Many developers read the official guidance and feel overwhelmed, thinking accessibility is difficult to grasp or implement.
The good news is that others have done the hard work of interpreting these guidelines and presenting them in more digestible formats. Using these resources can make accessibility much more approachable — and there’s no need to be intimidated!
Short answer: WCAG 2.2 at Level AA.
This is generally the ideal standard for most websites, though the exact level may depend on your audience. Some purists aim for AAA, but that’s usually only necessary for niche products that require additional support.
It’s fine to implement certain AAA guidelines selectively, as long as doing so doesn’t compromise the overall look, feel, or usability of your site.
In most cases, accessibility does not require a full redesign.
Some elements may need minor adjustments:
Implementation also matters. Without technical input, teams sometimes take overly cautious approaches that can oversimplify a site. With thoughtful planning and expert guidance, you can maintain a visually appealing design while embedding accessibility effectively — neither has to suffer.